Railway-rail joint.



No. 888,441. PATENTED MAY 19, 1908, W. E. JOHNSON.

RAILWAY RAIL JOINT.

APPLIOATION FILED JUNE 12,1901.

liiilj? 1 W/TNESSES INVENTOH A TTOHNEYS I UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM EDMOND JOHNSON. OF PORTER TOWNSHIP, MIDLAND COUNTY. MICHIGAN, ASHIGNOR OI" ONE-HALF SA RAH A. SMITH, OI PORTER IO\\"NSIIIP, MICHIGAN.

RAILWAY-RAIL JOINT.

To all whom it may concern: Be it known that I, \VILLIAM EDMOND Jornvsox, a citizen of the LIlltQtl States, and

a resident of lorter township, in the county wherein no fish-plates are needed, andthev rails will not ride up at theirends to any appreciable extent, thus avoiding the jarring and pounding of the wheels on the ends of the rails, as is customary.

The invention consists in the novel construction and combination of the several parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth and pointed out in the claim.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1. is a side e evation of opposing rails illustrating the improved connection; Fig. 2 is a plan view of the connected rails shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a view of the two rails shown in Fig. 2 separated, one rail being illustrated in plan and the other in side eleva-- tion; and Fig. 4 is a plan view of )ortions of connected railsillustrating a slightly different form of the tongue and groove or interlocking connection therefor.

A represents an end of a rail, and B the abutting or opposing end of a second rail; each rail is provided with the usual ilange'lO, web 11, and. head 12. The rail A at its end is provided with an inclined end face 13, which face inclines from the upper face or tread of the head of the rail downward and outward through its flange, and is best shown in Fig. 3, and the corresponding end of the rail B is provided'with a correspondingly in r'linod end face 11 adapted to fit snugly to the face'13 of the rail A when the said two rails are brought together, as is shown at 15 in Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 19, 1908.

Serial No. 378,493.

Fig. 1 A recess 16 of uniform width is made in the central portion of the inclined face 13 of the rail A. This recess follows the inclination of the said surface 13 and extends from the tread of the rail through its flange, as is also best shown in Fig. 2, and at the rear of the said recess 16, and in direct communication therewith, an enlargement 17 is made for the recess so as to provide practically a chamber, and this chamber 17 in the form of of rails shown in Figs. 1., 2 and 3, is substantially ovate, and the chamber has the same dowmvard inclination as the groove or )as' sage 16, in the end face 13 of the said ral A.

The rail A is provided with a tongue at its inclined edge 14 adapted to enter what may be broadly termed the groove in the end of the rail A. This tongue consists of a neck .18 that extends through the central portion of the inclined surface 14 of therail B from the tread through the flange, thesaid neck following the inclinationof the surface 14, and the said neck is further of uniform thick- 'ness and width, the thickness and width of the neck being such that the neck will be received in the slot 16 in the rail A, and integral with this neck 18 a head 19 is formed, following the inclination of the nook and likewise extending from the tread of the rail to its flange, and the said head 1%) is of such ishapc and is of such dimensions that it will freely enter and slide in the chamber 17 in the grooved portion of the rail A.

In assembling the parts it is simply necessary to enter the tongue of the rail B in the grooved portion of therail A, and then to force the rail B downward until its tread is llush with the tread of the 1' il A, and the two inclined surfaces 13 and 1 at the abutting ends of the rails will be in close engagement, as is shown in Fig. 1. By this construction the rail is joined in such manner as to render it practi ally continuous, and the joints are so made that they present a smooth surface to the wheels of the rolling stock, and owing to the inclined abutting faces of the rails at the joints and the corres )onding inclination of tiieir tic members, the rails practically lock themselves together and are .not liable evenundcr severe conditionsof use, to at the ends.

In order to render the rails exceedingly strong, particularly at their end portions, the web 11 of the rail at said end portions is increased in thickness, as is shown at in ent way of producing the connection be tween the rails, or making the rail joints.

The only difference consists in that the slot 16 is omitted from the rail section-A, and the chamber 17 is of different form and in its place a dove-tailed shaped groove 17 extends in the inclined face 13 of the rail A through the tread and the flange, and the tongue 21 which extends from the inclined face 14 of-the rail B is of cor-responding dovetailed shape, so as to fit into said dovetailed groove 17 It will be observed that suflicient play is provided for between the rails at their joints", to permit of theineces' sary expansion and contraction of the metal.

' Having thus; described-Amy invention, 'I'

claim as new and. desirextolsecure bvLetters Pa t Y In a; railway! joint, opposing rails having their meeting facesinchned in the same di rection, oneiof said rails": :having .1its inclined faces provided with a longitudinal undercut groove, and the other'with atongue fitting Within the groove? Intestimony" whereof'I have signed my name to' this specification vin the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

- WILLIAMJE'DMOND JOHNSON Witnesses: I

' ,GEoLW. LONG, E.;D.-PH1jLL1Ps; 

